Back To Your Heart
by SilverSeahorse
Summary: CHAPTER 3 UP! Yay! Everyone's in college now, but Hermione is going through a lot of changes, and not all of them are for her own benefit... HermioneRon with HarrysomeoneelsewhenIcanbearsed! Pleeeease R&R!
1. Chapter One

**Back To Your Heart**  
  
Hey! Just a few lil words before we start. I don't own J.K. Rowling's characters/locations/words/plots etc – I am just a huge fan of her books. I do own the plot (such as it is – I highly doubt anyone would want to steal it) and any extra characters I may decide to introduce to the proceedings!  
  
The characters may differ slightly from the way they are portrayed in the books, but I'm going to try to be as true to them as I possibly can. Of course, sometimes I need to change them to fit in with the story but I hope you'll understand why and enjoy the changes.  
  
I would love it if you read this story and decide to review it – I really do appreciate people who take the time to let me know what they think, although I don't appreciate being flamed, so please don't do that. If you don't like the fic, feel free to offer some constructive criticism, but I'm not in the way of accepting abuse without reason. I suppose there will always be 'diehards' who have their own ideas of characters and plots, but everyone's fics are different and I'm not even sure this one will be any good. I haven't decided if I'm going to stick with it, so if you do want to read more please let me know – I might edit it at some point too if I really don't like it!  
  
Other than that, sit back, relax and give it a shot... It might not be so bad, and if it is, it'll probably get better! ;)  
  
TeenyBash x

* * *

Hermione sighed, sitting on the window ledge and watching the other three girls arguing. They'd been standing in the middle of the floor, screaming at one another for the past twenty minutes, all while Hermione had been attempting to do a little studying. Fat chance of that, she thought as Parvati Patil grabbed her twin sister's lipstick and threw it through the open window behind Hermione. All action ceased for a moment while the girls stared, hardly believing what had just happened, before once again, it all kicked off and Hermione had finally had enough. She jumped down from her unwelcome vantage point and left the room, knowing full well that her absence would not be noticed for a long time.  
  
Hermione wasn't sure where to go. If she had been back at school, her first instinct would have been the library, where she could have peace and quiet to get on with her work. College, however, was having a strange effect on Hermione so far. For some reason unknown to her, she just didn't feel as motivated or bothered about her grades. So many major events had taken place during her time at Hogwarts that she would have been forgiven for realising some things are more important that marks, but Hermione knew that wasn't the main reason for her sudden change of heart.  
  
She was bored. Bored of being boring. Boring old Hermione who was no fun and who spent all her time reading, studying or working herself up about someone breaking the rules. While she still had a strong element of boring old Hermione in her, she recognised another girl struggling to come to the surface and show the world she wasn't the same person they thought she was.  
  
Hermione had been so deep in thought, she hadn't paid much attention to where she was wandering, and when she looked up she found she was in the college dining hall. It was after dinner, so there weren't that many people around, but there was always a steady supply of snacks available, no matter what time of day or night.  
  
As Hermione crossed the floor, intending to buy a sticky chocolate cake and eat it greedily in front of her stupid roommates, she heard someone behind her call her name, and spun around to see Ginny, one of her best friends, coming towards her.  
  
"Hey!" Ginny said as she hugged Hermione. "God, I'm sorry I haven't been up to visit yet, but things have been so hectic! How are you doing?"  
  
Hermione shrugged. "I'm ok."  
  
Ginny didn't look convinced, and asked who Hermione was sharing a room with.  
  
"Lavender, Parvati and Padma," came Hermione's dull reply, and Ginny looked horrified.  
  
"Ugh, what a crap combination! Poor you! Didn't they think to put you with someone remotely intelligent?"  
  
"Like you, you mean?" Hermione grinned, and Ginny laughed.  
  
"Well, now you mention it, yes!" she replied. "Anyway, I don't suppose you've seen my brother recently, have you?"  
  
Hermione was about to shake her head, when her gaze alighted on a familiar pair of boys sitting in the corner, with a not-so-familiar pair of girls. She bristled slightly but put on her 'couldn't-care-less' face for Ginny's benefit. "Apparently, he's over there," she said coolly, and Ginny followed her line of vision, before turning back with an even more disgusted expression on her face.  
  
"What is going on? Is there some sort of law stating that just because a guy is in college, that automatically makes him attractive?"  
  
Hermione laughed. "If there is, I know nothing about it." Why should she be bothered that the two people she had considered to be her very best friends, Harry and Ron, had barely bothered to say two words to her since they'd all arrived for term. Hermione was well aware of their ongoing bet to see which of them could 'bag' the most girls – their terminology, certainly not Hermione's – and had decided it was best to leave them to being twits, if that was how they wished to spend their time. She didn't really recognise the same people she'd spent seven years at school with; it was as if they'd never even met, sometimes. And they seemed to be having a ball without her, whereas she was stuck, night after night, with the braindead posse in her drab room.  
  
"It'll be alright, you know." Ginny had been watching Hermione closely, and a small smile was creeping over her lips. "He'll come back to you."  
  
Hermione stared at Ginny as if she was the maddest woman she'd ever met. "What?" was all she could say.  
  
"Ron," Ginny continued, the smile becoming much wider as Hermione blushed deep red. "Oh come on, Hermione, don't think I haven't noticed you two! I swear to God, I said to Harry that if you didn't wake up and get it on, we'd have to lock you up for a few hours and let chemistry do its stuff. Don't give me that look," she added sternly when Hermione tried to appear affronted. "You know it's the truth. And maybe things didn't work out exactly to plan at school, but that doesn't mean you have to give up! You're not someone I ever thought would give up."  
  
"Really?" Hermione replied lightly, although she wasn't really annoyed at Ginny. She was annoyed at the fact Ginny was right, and the fact Ron had a blonde girl practically sitting on him now – with no attempt being made to fight her off. "Well, maybe I've changed, Ginny. Things change. He's obviously not remotely interested in anyone with an IQ over 70, so why should I waste my time? I have better things to do."  
  
Ginny raised her eyebrows. "Like what?"  
  
"Like...helping Padma retrieve her lipstick," Hermione said quickly, before grabbing a cake, paying for it and quickly leaving the dining hall, Ginny giggling in her wake at the thought of Hermione caring a toss about lipstick. 


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**  
  
_God knows/God knows the direction/We're heading in tonight/God knows, god knows that when we're gone/They'll paint our shadows white/God knows god knows most wars are lost/Before they even start/And God knows god knows you'll count the cost/With blood or with your heart/With your heart  
  
I know it all worked out wrong/I know the next line to your cradle song/God knows god knows the sky lit up/As the theatre closed down/and I think you know I still love you/You're still the brightest glow around  
  
God knows god knows the seasons change/Summer came and went/God knows god knows we've all got one/A favourite descent/And oh baby we'll soldier on/To the final righteous breath/But God knows god knows the heart has gone/We've just got roses left/Roses left_

_**[Thea Gilmore]**_

_

* * *

_  
Hermione woke the next morning with a heavy heart. Despite what she'd told Ginny the day before, she hadn't gone back to help Parvati find her lipstick. Instead, she'd headed where she usually did when things got a bit rough – the library. She viewed it as more of a refuge than a place of study these days, because there wasn't much chance any of her roommates would lower themselves to join her. She had sat by herself, pretending to read various books, until the head librarian informed her it was time for them to close.  
  
As she lay in bed, all Hermione could think about was Ron and Harry, and how they seemed to be cutting her out of their lives as if she didn't matter. She was fully aware that she wasn't the gorgeous model-type girl they were interested in, but that had never mattered before. She didn't want to be someone they lusted after, anyway; she just wanted to be their best friend again. Sighing, she forced herself out of bed and searched around for clothes and her books. There was no point being late for class on top of everything else... but it was a measure of how bad she felt that she wasn't even that bothered about the prospect.

* * *

"Hermione!"  
  
It was as she was heading to lunch that Hermione heard someone behind her shout her name, and she spun around, fleetingly hoping it had been Harry or Ron, not even noticing the voice was female. She tried to hide her disappointment at the fact it was Cho Chang.  
  
"Oh, hey, Cho. How are you?"  
  
Cho smiled as she stopped in front of Hermione. Her long black hair was sleek and shiny, and she looked just as pretty as she had done in school. "I'm fine thanks! I was just wondering how you were getting on! I meant to visit you earlier in the term but oh my God, I've had so much work, you wouldn't believe!"  
  
"That's ok, I've been really busy too," Hermione lied. "So... what are you up to?"  
  
"Nothing much. I wondered if you'd like to come to lunch? Give us a chance to have a proper catch-up."  
  
Hermione was slightly surprised by this. While she'd spoken to Cho a few times at Hogwarts and thought she was a nice enough girl, the two of them had never been remotely close, and Hermione couldn't help but wonder what was causing Cho's sudden warmth towards her. Nevertheless, she agreed, supposing that lunch with Cho would be better than lunch alone, yet again, and the two continued walking in the direction Hermione had been going originally.  
  
"Is everything ok, Hermione?" Cho asked, once they'd found a table in the large dining hall and food had appeared on their plates. "It's just... well, you're usually with Harry, aren't you?"  
  
"And Ron," Hermione added, without thinking.  
  
"Of course, Ron. The three of you used to be inseparable! And I haven't seen you with them in a while... Come to think of it, I haven't seen them at all in a while."  
  
Sighing, Hermione began eating her sausage and mash. "Look, Cho, if you're sitting with me just so you can ask about Harry, then forget it, ok? I haven't talked to him in a long time so there's no point. He seems to have forgotten I exist." Her last words sounded quite bitter, and Cho bit her lip.  
  
"I'm sorry, I didn't realise things were so bad. But honestly, I didn't want to ask about Harry the whole time. I wanted us to be friends." Cho's voice was small now, and Hermione stared at her.  
  
"I'm not being funny, Cho, but I thought you had your own friends? What would you want me for?"  
  
Cho laughed sourly. "Yeah, everyone thinks I'm so popular, don't they? Maybe in school... Everything's different now. They've made a load of better friends here, so they don't want me any more. To tell you the truth, Hermione, I'm really lonely. I've thought a few times about quitting, but my parents would be so disappointed and I do want to get my degree. It's just..."  
  
"Hard?" Hermione supplied, and to her relief Cho nodded. "I know what you mean. That's probably what's happened with Harry and Ron. I mean, they used to love knowing me when it meant I could do their homework for them and figure out ways for them to stay alive... Now it's like they're all famous, so no one wants to know me any more. I helped to defeat Voldemort, too!" She felt tears in her eyes and willed them away in case Cho thought she was as pathetic as she knew she was.  
  
"It's ok, I know you did. Come here." And then Cho hugged Hermione, something the younger girl wasn't used to. She'd never had close female friends, which was possibly the reason she found it so difficult to tolerate her three roommates, all of whom had been close for years, with Parvati and Padma being twins as well. The only two people Hermione had felt like family with had been Ron and Harry – and Ginny, but Ginny was still in school, and couldn't visit often.  
  
"I'm sorry, I'm being so stupid," Hermione said at last, pulling away from Cho and wiping her eyes. "They're just stupid boys. Just because they had their names in the paper..."  
  
Cho grinned. "They even spelt Ron's wrong, remember? Whoever they have for new friends, they'll soon realise they miss you. And when they do, I hope you give them hell." She turned to her plate, picking up her fork, before speaking again. "Do you want to come to a party in my dorm on Friday night? My friend Ariadne organised it. She's practically the only sane person up there, but she's telling loads of people to come and I think you should! Keep me company."  
  
Hermione felt sick at the very idea. She'd never been one for parties and dancing and letting her hair down. She didn't even know what she'd do, and thought she'd probably end up looking really silly. Cho was looking at her expectantly, and she wasn't sure how to reply.  
  
"Please?" Cho went on, pre-empting whatever it was Hermione had been about to say. "You don't have to stay if you hate it. Just promise me you'll show up? It might make you feel better."  
  
"O...K," Hermione relented, to Cho's delight. "But I swear, if I feel out of my depth, I'm going." She made a mental note to feel out of her depth as soon as she set foot inside Cho's dorm.

* * *

"Ooh, a party?" Lavender's eyes lit up as Hermione explained about Friday night. Cho had asked her to spread the word on behalf of everyone in Cho's corridor, so naturally the three most likely candidates were very excited.  
  
Hermione nodded. "Yep, a party." She sat down on her bed and tried not to laugh as Lavender, Parvati and Padma danced around as if they'd been told again that Voldemort was dead. "It's not till Friday," she reminded them above the din they were making, not that they heard her.  
  
"Ooh, Hermione!" Parvati shouted. "I know what we can do! We can get you all dressed up!"  
  
"Ooh, yeah!" Padma added, giggling. "Make you all pretty and see if we can get you a boyfriend!"  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Ooh, I don't think so. Sorry." She watched their faces fall and immediately felt guilty, like a mother confiscating her children's sweets. "I'm just not that bothered! Nobody's going to notice."  
  
"That's not true," Parvati scolded. "They will notice you. Anyway, if you let us help, they'll notice you even more! Please? We won't do anything mad, we promise."  
  
It took five more minutes of begging and pleading before Hermione reluctantly gave in, making them swear they would let her decide her own outfit. Now she really was dreading Friday.

* * *

Of course, Friday came a lot quicker than Hermione had hoped it would, and suddenly she found herself sitting in a chair in the middle of the floor, being fussed over by three extremely hyper girls, all of whom were already dressed and made up. Truth be told, they all looked lovely and part of Hermione was jealous that they could change themselves like that and not care in the slightest. They wanted others to look at them. Hermione didn't. She wanted to find a corner and stay there all night, but that wasn't a realistic option.  
  
"Your hair looks amazing now!" Padma exclaimed, half an hour after they'd started work on it. "It's all straight!"  
  
This wasn't groundbreaking to Hermione, who had straightened her hair once before, for the Yule Ball in her fourth year at Hogwarts, but apart from that she'd never had the time or the inclination to do it every day. Now, however, as Padma held up a mirror, Hermione found her confidence lifted a little at seeing the transformation. Not only was her hair perfect, but Lavender had added eyeshadow and a touch of lipstick, highlighting Hermione's features and making her look slightly older. She was pleased; they hadn't gone overboard as she'd feared, and she still looked like herself, only with a few differences here and there.  
  
"Now, what have you decided to wear?" Parvati asked as the other two girls put away their cosmetics. She frowned as Hermione held out what looked like a long skirt and a plain black top. "Hmm. Try it on, then."  
  
Hermione did so, after making sure none of them was looking, and then turned back. She felt fine in this outfit, but apparently, her 'staff' didn't agree.  
  
"Oh no, that's not for a party!" Lavender cried, rushing over. "You have such a nice figure, Hermione. Just let me..."  
  
"No!" Hermione shouted crossly, and Lavender stared. "I'm sorry," Hermione continued, in a lower voice, "but I don't feel comfortable in anything else. It's not me." She held her hands up as in apology, knowing how stupid she must sound.  
  
"Please..." Lavender was pouting now, the way she did with her boyfriend, Seamus. Unfortunately, Hermione wasn't a lust-riddled teenage boy, so it didn't quite have the same effect.  
  
"No," she insisted, folding her arms.  
  
"Oh well," Parvati sighed. "Let's have a look at you, anyway. Give us a twirl."  
  
Hermione shrugged – that didn't seem too bad. She began to turn around, and then she felt something warm brush past her, making her frown in suspicion. When she faced the front again, she was shocked to find herself staring into Padma's mirror again... and her clothes were different. One of the girls had obviously charmed them, so that the top was more low-cut, into a V- shape and trendily jagged at the edges, while her skirt was much shorter and asymmetrical just above her knees. The shock of seeing the whole effect meant that Hermione couldn't protest; she merely stared and stared until the other three grabbed her hands and dragged her out of the door, up to Cho's floor.  
  
"Hey!" Cho greeted them at the door of her dorm, which was the first on the corridor, with a big smile. "Wow, Hermione, you look fantastic!" She hugged each of them in turn before letting them past into the large room, where music was blasting and people were spread about, talking, laughing and occasionally doing a bit more.  
  
"I'm just going to find Seamus," Lavender said with a giggle, weaving her way over to where he was standing with Dean Thomas.  
  
"Typical," Parvati moaned, watching her friend. "Anyone want to dance?"  
  
Padma did, but Hermione most certainly did not, so she settled for standing by the food table and deciding what looked safest to eat. Just as she was examining a suspicious-looking sandwich, she heard a commotion at the door and looked over to see Harry and Ron arriving, each of them with a skinny, laughing girl on their arms. Hermione found that she felt rather sick, and discarded the sandwich in favour of a strong drink. She never usually drank, but this was enough to send anyone over the edge.  
  
"Excuse me..." Hermione heard the voice but refused to turn around, until the speaker was level with her at the table, and then she looked around.  
  
"Hello, Ron," she said evenly, trying to suppress a chuckle at the stunned expression on Ron's face as he met her eyes and realised who he was looking at.  
  
"Shit... Hermione!" he cried, and before either of them knew what they were doing, they'd embraced in a tight hug. Hermione closed her eyes and smiled with relief. She'd expected to be angry with him and end up having a huge, embarrassing argument, but the moment he'd said her name, all her anger had melted away and it was as if the past two months had never happened.  
  
Eventually, they broke apart and Ron was grinning madly, as well as looking Hermione up and down with very little subtlety. "You look..."  
  
Hermione laughed quietly. "Stupid? Ridiculous? Because I know, Ron. This wasn't my idea, believe me."  
  
"I believe you," he replied, then stopped laughing. "But I was going to say, you look amazing."  
  
Hermione knew she was blushing, and didn't dare meet his eyes again. She was almost grateful when they were interrupted by Ron's arm-girl, a tall blonde who was looking down on Hermione as if she was pond-scum.  
  
"I'm sorry, I had no idea you were busy," she said airily, reaching behind to get a drink.  
  
"This is Hermione, my friend," Ron explained to the annoying girl, who didn't look very impressed. "Hermione, this is Amanda."  
  
"Amelia!" the girl growled, glaring at him. "Honestly, you'd think you might remember my fucking name."  
  
Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Well, if your fucking name is different from your normal name, I can see why Ron might have problems," she replied coolly. Both Ron and Amelia stared at Hermione, Ron with awe, Amelia with something resembling hatred. Hermione didn't care; she'd just spotted Harry, and by the look on his face, he couldn't believe it was her either.  
  
"Yes!" he yelled, running over and picking Hermione right off her feet to swing her around. They both ended up laughing along with Ron, while Amelia had stalked off, shooting Hermione filthy looks.  
  
"Well I am surprised. I thought you'd both forgotten me," Hermione was saying, as the three of them sat on a very squashy sofa, drinking punch and talking incessantly. "I've seen you loads of times and you've never once said hello to me. Or even come to visit. It was really hurtful." She looked down at her cup and willed herself not to cry, if only for the sake of her make-up.  
  
Harry put an arm around her. "We're so sorry. We didn't mean to, honest! Things got on top of us..."  
  
"It's mad down our corridor," Ron explained, shaking his head. "You wouldn't believe. There are these girls, and they camp outside our room every night to try and see Harry. We've had security remove them but they keep coming back..."  
  
Hermione pursed her lips. "Must be dreadful for you," she said casually, before laughing at Harry's pained expression. "Aww, is it really that bad?"  
  
"Well, it was fun in the beginning, but now it's a bit freaky," he admitted. "A good few times we decided to try and find you, but so much has happened, and by this time we thought you probably hated us."  
  
"I did," Hermione smiled. "Never mind, at least you got your gorgeous girlfriends, eh?"  
  
Ron sighed. "None of the girls are remotely interested in me, Hermione. They only pretend to be because I'm Harry's best friend and they use me to get closer to him. I've known that all along, but I tried to pretend I didn't care. Seeing you tonight... It's made me realise..."  
  
Hermione frowned. "Realise what?"  
  
Ron turned as red as his hair. "Nothing, I didn't mean anything. Just... Well, you don't just like me 'cause of Harry."  
  
"No, that's very true," Hermione replied gently. "I like you for lots of reasons." They exchanged a small smile, before Harry launched into a story from one of their classes. 


	3. Chapter Three

**A/N: **I was on a bit of a roll last night, so I wrote another part of this fic! I'm a bit more happy with it now, as I'm getting into the characters and my storyline. You may have noticed (if not you will now, lol) that I tend to stay away from the magic side of things. This is because while I have read the books millions of times, I don't feel comfortable enough to focus on spells and things in my own fic just yet. I don't want to discredit JK in any way, so I'm doing what I'm better at, which is relationships and people thinking too much about stuff, lol. So if it seems like it's not a very wizardy-type fic, that's why. I'm trying to add little things in here and there to be authentic but I think I'd mess it up if I went too far!

Obviously I own none of the characters - they're all JK Rowling's amazing creations, except for Nicky who isn't 100% my own idea either, but hey... ;)

Yay, I got 2 reviews! I hope to get more but I very much appreciate the ones I already have! :)

**Sugar High:** Thank you so much for reviewing my fic, I'm glad you're enjoying it, especially as I'm enjoying yours a lot! I know what you mean about the college thing and I'm trying to make that more obvious with each chapter but it's difficult to take them away from school, lol!

**AbundantFear:** Obviously you know how much I'm loving your fic, so thanks so much for saying you like mine! I'm definitely enjoying writing from Hermione's POV for a change, as I think she could become a very interesting and deep character if she was examined! Hope I'm doing her justice alright!

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* * *

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**Chapter Three**  
  
_Don't let your head rule your heart/Don't let your world be torn apart/Don't keep it all to yourself/Just let all your emotions run free/With someone like me/That's the way it should be/Someone like me  
  
I know it's hard when you're feeling down/To lift your feet up off the ground/We make mistakes but doesn't everybody/You don't always have to agree/With someone like me/That's the way it should be/Someone like me  
  
We know the story so far/Of what you want and who you are/Let all your emotions run free/You don't always have to agree/With someone like me/That's the way it should be/Someone like me..._  
  
**_[Atomic Kitten]_**

* * *

Hermione, Harry and Ron had been talking together for so long, they'd barely noticed anything happening around them, and were surprised when Cho's voice made all three look up.  
  
"Hey, Hermione, the party's going really well, don't you think?" she asked, to which Hermione could only nod. She didn't know much about the party, because she'd spent most of it so far ensconced in the corner with her two best friends, catching up. Cho didn't seem to notice however, and smiled. "It's not out of hand yet at least. It's nice to see you, Harry, Ron," she added, nodding at them in turn. "Glad you could both come!"  
  
Hermione watched the two boys return Cho's smile, but Harry's seemed rather forced. She supposed that, even after all this time, he still had strange feelings about her and their very brief relationship at school.  
  
"Well, I'll speak to you later, Hermione," Cho said at last, after letting her gaze linger on Harry for slightly longer than was strictly necessary. She walked off, leaving the boys looking quizzically at the girl sitting between them, who was red in the cheeks.  
  
"Since when were you so friendly with her?" Ron asked after a few moments' silence.  
  
Hermione shrugged. "Not long. We got talking and she's a nice girl. I'm sorry Harry," she added, noticing his indignant expression, "but you two weren't around, and anyway, all that stuff was ages ago. I'm allowed to be her friend if I want to be. She's probably thinking I'm not interested any more, if I'm friends with you again..."  
  
"Of course you can be friends with her," Harry sighed. "And you're right, it was all a long time ago. It doesn't even matter after everything that's happened. I should try to make it up with her, I guess."  
  
Just then, Lavender, Seamus, Dean, Parvati and some people Hermione didn't know all descended upon them – or, more accurately, upon Harry. It appeared none of them had been in much contact with him recently either, and the girls started asking him loads of questions, sitting at his feet as if he was some sort of demi-god. The boys decided to hang back and discuss Quidditch with Ron, leaving Hermione once again out of the mix. She stood up and sighed, heading for the door. She was fed up of not fitting in, even with people she considered friends, and decided the time had come to finally do something about it. Obviously, none of them was going to change, so Hermione was going to do it instead, and then people would start taking proper notice of her. Especially...  
  
Hermione stopped herself from mentally completing that sentence, and quietly slipped out of the room.

* * *

The next afternoon, Hermione found herself in a very boring lecture about 'the theories behind Charms', and despite her spotless track record in classes, even this was proving too much for her. It was a warm day and the lecture hall was stuffy and uncomfortable, forcing Hermione to push up the sleeves on her top and undo a couple of buttons. This didn't make a whole lot of difference to her concentration levels, and her notes, which had started out well in her usual neat handwriting, had turned into doodles.  
  
The night before, at Cho's party, was playing heavily on Hermione's mind, as well. She'd been so relieved to see Harry and Ron and find that they were missing her after all, that she'd totally forgotten how angry she'd planned to be with them. It wasn't easy though, because as soon as they'd all sat down to talk, it was as if their time apart had never happened, and if Hermione was honest, she much preferred to pretend she'd never been lonely.  
  
What she didn't like, however, were the excessive numbers of girls who'd spent the evening attaching themselves to both boys. Even her own roommates had been behaving stupidly, and they knew Harry and Ron perfectly well already! Hermione rested her chin on her hand and sighed. It was difficult when your best friends were so popular and you were... well, plain, unnoticable and boring.  
  
It was just as she was thinking these things that she realised people around her were standing up to leave, and she figured the lecture must have finished at long last. Hermione picked up her books, parchment and quill before edging her way along the row to the end. As she was walking up the stairs, she was surprised to hear someone call her name.  
  
"Excuse me, Hermione?"  
  
She turned around and came face-to-face with the most gorgeous man she had ever laid eyes on. He was taller than her, with short blonde hair and twinkling blue eyes. His mouth was shaped into an attractive grin, and it was all Hermione could do not to let her jaw drop.  
  
"You dropped this." The guy held out one of her doodle-covered pieces of parchment and she took it, blushing slightly.  
  
"Thanks," she replied. "How do you know my name?" The question was out before she'd had a chance to check it over in her mind.  
  
"Psychic," he winked. "My name's Nicky, if that makes you feel any better."  
  
Hermione forced a weak smile. She felt ridiculous, talking to this guy who was clearly way out of her league. It was a measure of the way she'd changed at college that she was nervous at all; in school, Hermione had never been especially shy.  
  
"Erm, well, thanks," she repeated, feeling sillier by the second. She turned to go again, but felt him lay a hand on her arm, sending a small shiver down her spine. This wasn't something that happened very often to Hermione, and she was a little apprehensive, but looked at him anyway.  
  
"Would you like to go to dinner with me sometime?" He had such a lovely accent, and it made all of his words sound even better than they would have normally – if that was possible. As it was, Hermione almost fainted with the shock of being asked out. She nodded as if in a trance, not fully aware of the repercussions, and Nicky smiled broadly, displaying adorably uneven teeth. "Great! I'll send an owl tomorrow. See you later!"  
  
And with that, he was off, leaving a very confused Hermione to make her way to her practical Potions lab.

* * *

That evening, while Hermione, Parvati and Padma were sprawled around their dorm, struggling with various pieces of work they'd been assigned, a handsome barn owl soared through the open window and came to a halt in front of Hermione, who was lying on her stomach on the floor.  
  
"What a beautiful owl!" Parvati exclaimed. For once, Hermione couldn't roll her eyes, because she agreed. "Who's that from?"  
  
Hermione shook her head. "Don't know." She removed the attached letter and unrolled it, trying to move so that the others wouldn't be able to see the writing.  
  
_"Dear Hermione,  
  
I know I said I would owl tomorrow, but this is pretty close. I really enjoyed talking to you today and would love it if you would come with me for dinner on Saturday night. I realise this might seem a bit sudden, but I believe life's too short to wait around.  
  
You don't need to reply – I will be waiting in the foyer for you at 7pm on Saturday and it's up to you whether you come, but I hope you do.  
  
Nicky"  
  
_Hermione's breath had caught in her throat. She had no idea what to think about this. Surely there had been some sort of mistake. She'd looked her normal self when Nicky had met her, so it wasn't as if she'd had her hair done and her make-up on to look attractive. Maybe he had an ulterior motive... Maybe he knew she was friends with Harry and wanted to harm him! As soon as that thought entered her head, she decided it was time to pay a visit to Harry and Ron's dorm.  
  
After telling the other girls she was going for some fresh air, Hermione left the room and made her way along to the spiral staircase which linked all the dorm floors. She knew they were below her, so she went down a couple of flights until she was pretty sure she was in the right place and walked out into a long corridor which was identical to the one she lived in. Luckily, all of the doors had little gold name-plates on them down here as well, so Hermione simply walked along, examining each one, until she came across 'Potter, Weasley, Longbottom, Martin'. Taking a deep breath, she knocked gingerly on the door, listening for any signs of life inside. When nothing happened, she knocked again, this time a lot louder and harder, and within seconds the door was opened by Neville, who looked delighted to see her.  
  
"Hermione!" he cried and let her inside, where Harry was sitting at the desk, clearly trying to study as well. The desk, however, had been moved right behind the door in the corner, which looked like the oddest place to be sitting when there was plenty of space by the window.  
  
"Hey!" Harry grinned when he saw who it was, and came over to greet her. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Just stumbled down here by accident and thought I recognised the names," Hermione smiled. "Well, three of them. Who's Martin?"  
  
"Oh, he's from another school or something," Neville replied, settling himself down on his bed with a large book entitled Plants and Plantations: A History of Foreign Species. Evidently, it was Neville's talent for Herbology which he was pursuing at college, much to Hermione's satisfaction.  
  
Harry made a face. "Yeah," he said under his breath, "a school for mad wizards. Neville only likes him because he makes Neville cups of tea."  
  
Hermione laughed. "Shame, he's not here for me to meet him."  
  
"No, he went out. Didn't say where. And Ron is out with Amelia. At least, I think that's her name."  
  
That made Hermione stare. "That... That girl from the party, you mean?"  
  
Harry nodded, producing a chair for Hermione to sit on at the other side of his desk, while he sat back down, moving a few things over to give her space. "Yeah. I know, I was surprised as well, but apparently, she's one of the ones who actually likes him and not just me. His words, not mine," he added hurriedly.  
  
"Oh." For some reason, this perturbed Hermione. She couldn't help picturing Ron and Amelia out somewhere having a laugh. Or at least, Ron would be laughing. Amelia, when Hermione had met her, looked as if she'd never laughed in her life. Perhaps laughing wasn't sophisticated enough. "Oh. Well, as long as he's enjoying himself."  
  
Harry looked at her with a smile. "It's ok, you don't have to pretend with me, you know."  
  
"I don't know what you're talking about," Hermione replied, trying to look affronted. "I really do hope they're having a good time."  
  
"Hmm." Harry continued to give her sly looks until she told him to stop it. "Anyway, I thought you'd be studying or something."  
  
"No. It might be a shock to learn this, Harry, but sometimes I do other things with my time," Hermione said airily.  
  
Harry snorted. "Since when?"  
  
Hermione felt heat rise in her face as she became more annoyed. "Since you didn't bother speaking to me for months. If you'd cared at all, you'd have found out I've changed too." She looked away, trying not to let herself get upset. This was stupid, she thought. Harry didn't mean it like that. What had got into her?  
  
"You know we're sorry about that," Harry said quietly, glancing at Neville to make sure he wasn't listening. "I was only joking. I know you do other things." Their eyes met and Hermione knew they were both thinking about the many times they'd had to face evil together.  
  
After a few moments, Hermione sat up. "So why are you sitting round here? Behind the door?"  
  
"Oh. That." Harry went crimson. "It's in case anyone opens the door and there are girls out there. If I sit here, they can't see me unless they come in, and we never invite them in. Well, not if we're sober." He frowned. "That makes me sound really arrogant, doesn't it?"  
  
Hermione shook her head. "No, not at all. It's not your fault all these airheads have decided to stalk you. Honestly, you should have something done."  
  
Her brisk tone was much more like the old Hermione Harry had spent seven years being best friends with, and he couldn't help grinning as he turned the page in his textbook and asked her for some help. 


End file.
